It’s the rumors that keep things interesting, except this time it’s coming from a stranger source than usual.

Per Macotakara, a recruiter for Foxconn’s growing Taiyuan plant may have inadvertently spoiled some of Appe’s 2012 iPhone plans. When interviewing with TV-Tokyo [past 6-minute mark], the staffer said the plant was explicitly hiring 18,000 workers “for the fifth-generation phone.” He expected the phone to come out in June.

As a recruiter and not a direct product overseer, the Foxconn worker’s knowledge of what would be happening isn’t certain. If accurate, he may only know enough for a recruiting drive and may not have the full picture. The phone may only be shipping or starting production in June, which could put a launch weeks or months later.

The interview could still be a sign that Apple won’t wait until fall for its next revision and that the October release of the iPhone 4S was a singular exception rather than starting a new pattern. Based on new iPad components, many now anticipate Apple jumping to LTE support. It might also get an A6 processor that wasn’t ready in time for the new iPad. Conflicting rumors have left debate open as to whether or not there will be a larger screen.

Per Macworld and F-Secure, the Flashback Mac trojan uncovered by security firm Intego last year can now infect your computer from little more than a visit to a website.

Originally, Flashback masqueraded as an installer for Adobe’s Flash Player. Since then, the malware has changed tacks at last once since then, instead pretending to be a Mac software update or a Java updater.

The latest variant, discovered by security researchers at F-Secure and dubbed OSX/Flashback.K, takes advantage of a weakness in Java SE6. That vulnerability, identified as CVE-2012-0507, allows the malware to install itself from a malicious website the user visits, without needing the user to enter an administrator’s password.

No fix is currently available for this vulnerability on the Mac, although the hole was patched in Java for Windows back in February. Unfortunately, Apple has long been criticized for lagging behind Windows when it comes to updating Java for security patches. However, given that Apple rolls out updates every few months, it seems likely that the company will distribute a patch in the not too distant future.

Until then, F-Secure suggests users deactivate Java on their Macs. The company has also given instructions for checking if your system is currently infected by the Flashback Trojan.

It’s also worth noting that the Java vulnerability has recently been included in the popular BlackHole exploit kit used by many attackers.

While there’s no need for widespread panic, the fact that this latest version of the malware can install itself without the user’s password is enough of a reason for concern that some precautions are necessary. Disabling Java is a good step, but the first line of defense is, as always, to be cognizant of the websites you visit and use common sense.

Per AnandTech, Apple is reportedly working on a physical controller to similarly enhance gameplay on its iPad and other mobile devices.

In his review of Apple’s new iPad and its gaming graphics prowess, AnandTech’s Anand Lal Shimpi reported that he has been made aware of “an internal Apple project to bring a physical controller to market,” but said his sources were unable to determine whether the company has made a definitive decision to follow through on its efforts.

Regardless, Lal Shimpi believes such devices may soon be a necessary accompaniment for hardcore mobile gamers, especially as smartphones and tablets come close to equalling the performance of existing game consoles.

He adds that the iPad maker may also be feeling some pressure to this end from rival Google, which has baked in basic wired and wireless controller support into its Android operating system since the release of Honeycomb 3.0 roughly one year ago.

Along with their Android counterparts, iOS devices have emerged as a new frontier for game developers, with one research firm indicating that the two platforms saw their combined share of U.S.-based game software revenue rise more than threefold from just 19% in 2009 to an estimated 58% by the end of last year.

Their success has come at the expense of incumbents Nintendo and Sony, who saw their respective share of software sales slip from 70% to 36% and 11% to 6%, respectively, over the same period.

The situation faced by Nintendo and Sony shows signs of worsening this year, with Sony recently reporting a staggering loss of US$1.2 billion for the December quarter shortly after Nintendo reported the first ever operating loss (US$575 million) in its corporate history.

Meanwhile, Apple has quietly been assembling an arsenal of seasoned gaming executives to help leverage its momentum in the gaming space as it takes a head-on approach to combating encroachment from Google and others.

Most recently, the company was reported to have lured Robin Burrowes away from heading up Microsoft’s overseas XBox Live team. His hiring followed the recruit of Nintendo’s public relation’s chief Robert Saunders last year, as well as Nick Grange — who also at one point ran public relations for Xbox, as well as for gaming heavyweights Activision and Electronics Arts.

Per DigiTimes, a completely redesigned family of Apple’s iMacs due for release later this year will not only arrive noticeably slimmer than existing models but may also be the first of the company’s desktops to feature anti-reflective displays.

The Taiwanese rumor publication has claimed that G-Tech is ramping up its monthly production capacity of cover glass from 1.8 million units to 3 million units in an effort to supply 25% or more of the cover glass for Apple’s new iPad.

The report curiously cites sources in adding that “G-Tech is also expected to supply AR (anti-reflective) glass solutions for Apple’s all-in-one (AIO) PCs with the new products to also serve as a growth driver for G-Tech.”

That would be a first for an Apple desktop, as the Mac maker has thus far only offered anti-reflective solutions as built-to-order options on its MacBook family of notebooks.

Apple’s last major redesign of the iMac arrived in October 2009 in the form of new 21.5- and 27-inch aluminum-clad models with an edge-to-edge glass design. Since then, the company has been working on a pair strikingly slimmer and lighter models that will more closely resemble the footprint of today’s most popular LED televisions according to sources close to the story.

Rumored for an introduction sometime in the second half of the year, the new iMac will help define a trend that will also see several of the company’s other core products adopt slimmer, more streamlined footprints throughout the year, including new MacBook Pros that resemble MacBook Airs and a thinner iPhone.

Separately, Apple has also been working to cut the fat from peripherals that ship with its industry-leading all-in-one desktop, with recent company filings revealing techniques for a new, slim-form keyboard with keys that could have a total travel range of as little as 0.2 millimeters.